While we’d all love to have limitless bank accounts over the summer holidays, sadly, family fun is often capped. We have already had some brilliant days out but no matter how much we prepare, none of us are Mr or Mrs Moneybags.

As such, for a successful streamlined summer, parents have to get creative about how to entertain the brood. Low-cost family fun is the key to keeping little minds stimulated, and ensuring boredom is at bay.

15 virtually cost-free fun for the family

1. Magic a lunch into a picnic

You were making those sarnies anyway, were you not? Rather than popping them on a plate, wrap them in a sandwich bag alongside a carton and a packet of crisps, and make your way to the field. Lay out an old blanket, and magic that lunch into an impromptu picnic.

2. Coupled-up colouring

Youngsters can pair up with a sibling or a parent and work together on some intricate colouring sheets – calming, quality together time.

3. Create a family book club

Bookworms are never bored. Reading is such a pleasurable pastime and with the potential to fill hours upon hours of free time. The rules are simple. Let your child(ren) choose the books for your summer book club. Everyone in the family reads a book over each given week. Put aside a certain day and time each week for biscuits and book talk.

4. National Summer Reading Challenge

Alternatively, register your child for the National Summer Reading Challenge at your local library. After reading six books over the six-week break, they will receive a certificate and a medal for their efforts.

5. Discover local wildlife

Whether you live in the city or the countryside, there’s nature near to you. Have a look online for what to expect in your neighbourhood, and go outdoors together on a homemade nature trail. Don’t forget the camera!

6. Garden games

From football and catch to swing ball and tig, keep the lawn cut and kids can keep themselves entertained for hours with sports and garden games.

7. Movie night with treats and sweets

The cinema may be expensive, but a family movie night at home can cost next to nothing. Head to Wilko’s for a pick-a-mix, put a pizza in the oven, tip some crisps into a bowl, and get snuggled up on the sofa.

8. Get wet!

Paddling pools, water balloons, hose pipes, water pistols… as soon as the sun shines, get outside and get wet!

9. Berry picking in the wilderness

Sure, berry picking can cost a fortune, but not if you know where to go. Many fields, canals, and other public pathways, are lined with blackberries and other edible fruits. Pick away.

10. (Don’t) Make a meal of it

With a basketful of berries, be sure to create a culinary masterpiece once you’re back at home. From fresh fruit ice-lollies to homemade summer berry pie, kids love cooking.

11. Find out what’s free

Have a browse online for free local attractions. You may be pleasantly surprised. Some farms are free, so long as you buy animal feed, and many museums offer free entry too. If you live in a bustling borough, you may find that you can fill a day a week with free attractions nearby.

12. Adventuring outdoors

Biking, hiking, dog walking. Scooters, roller skates, skateboards. Summer is the time to get active outdoors.

13. Pond dipping and crab catching

If you live near the coast, crabbing is a favourite low-cost pastime for children of all ages. Yet, those who live inland can also put their own spin on it with a similar activity. With just a cheap little net, see what creatures are revealed when pond dipping.

14. Parks and playgrounds

It’s always OK to do the norm. Stop giving yourself such a hard time! Take a ball for a kick about, or take the young ones to the playground. If you’ve been a few times already, mix it up maybe, and go a little further afield than your nearest park.

15. Get all green-fingered

Sunflower seeds cost pennies. An old potato in some soil doesn’t cost much, either. Why not plant some flowers and some fruit and vegetables? Children will love watching them grow and eventually reaping the tasty rewards of their efforts.

What is your favourite "free" activity?

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So, the six-week holidays are upon us and, as if right on the cue, the heavens have opened. Yes, The Great British Summer has sprawled itself over August once again, complete with dull grey skies, pounding rainfall, and spectacular thunderstorms. What’s more, that rain has wiped out your entire school holiday entertainment itinerary. 

Playing in the park, picnics, long family walks, when the weather’s on your side, the list of summer activities is endless. Yet, thanks to the UK’s clime, us parents must prepare for the worst. We need a bag of tricks for keeping the kids entertained when we’re three-weeks deep into the summer break, and the rain just won’t quit.

1. Perfect the Pinterest crafts
   You’ve had them pinned for months on end. Now is the time to brave the storm – bring out the coloured pencils, the paint, the PVA, and get stuck in!
2. Rustle up a culinary sensation Have a flick through some cookbooks for inspiration and spend an afternoon making a luscious family dinner. Alternatively, children go wild for baked treats, you know, biscuits, cake and buns. Organised well, you can scatter such activities out across the remaining weeks, filling up mornings with quality ‘together time’.
3. Tap into the autumn term
   If your school lets you in on your child’s topic for the upcoming term, use those rainy days to explore the subject. Perhaps there’s a book you can enjoy together, a film, a related local attraction. Google is your friend and learning can be fun.
4. Look out for library events
   Meet the author, comic book creations, character-inspired crafts, check out your nearest library for some surprising summer fun.
5. Swot up at local museums and exhibitions
   From Halifax’s Eureka! Museum to London’s Natural History Museum, the Roald Dahl Museum and Story Centre, Shakespeare’s Birthplace, and all that’s in-between. Inject a bit of culture into their break at museums and exhibitions.
6. Head for the pool
   Swimming! It’s such a simple solution, you may have even overlooked it. Forever a crowd pleaser, pack up your swim stuff and take a dip with the kids.
7. Bring out the board games
   Prepare some snacks, set the table, put a family movie on the tele, and you’re set for an afternoon of board games.Monopoly, Trivial Pursuit, and Jenga are just a few timeworn family favourites, but why not try something new, too. Check out Qwirkle, Articulate, and Beat the Parents.
8. Make the most of kids’ cinema
   New cinema releases often make the family calendar over the summer holidays. Yet, when the brood gets bored, early morning kids’ cinema can be a lifesaver. Showing films that have recently left the big screen, it is a cheap and cheerful way to pass a few hours, especially when it’s miserable outside
9. Create a cinema at home
   I am usually one for letting light into the rooms and have taken every opportunity to create more light in the house with roofwindows (and because they are so easy to install too) but why not shut all the curtains and blinds and create your own cinema at home? Get some movies and popcorn, snuggle up on the sofa and enjoy some family favourites. 
10. Just get wet!
    We all seem to have such an aversion to rain! For guaranteed ultimate family fun, brave the weather and just get wet! Kids love mud! Mud fights, mud pies, mud slides, whatever! Dress them in old clothes and let them loose. It is sure to be the day they remember from the entire summer break.

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I had to wait until I was 17 until I could get behind the wheel of a car and it was the first thing I did when I celebrated my birthday. I asked for driving lessons for my birthday and had weekly lessons until I passed (first time of course) but what if you could get driving experience behind the wheel before you are 17? Research shows that it is a lack of driving experience - not a lack of years on the planet - that causes 1 in 5 newly qualified drivers to crash within 6 months of passing their test. That was the theory behind Young Driver and so when we met them at the BlogOn conference earlier this year, I was excited to give both girls the chance to get behind the wheel.

Young Driver operate their lessons at locations all over the UK and the closest to us was Birmingham NEC, so we booked for both girls on a (hopefully) bright Saturday morning in August. Unfortunately our optimism about the weather was a little ill fated but it didn't stop the fun! 

You have to arrive around 15-20 minutes before your lesson and all new drivers get a Driving Diary which keeps track of your lessons and what you have learnt. This is great if you want to use the lessons regularly and build confidence and knowledge behind the wheel rather than just a one off experience. 

When you arrive at the lessons, they also give you the chance to get a video from inside the car and after a little convincing, my eldest agreed to it (although am not allowed to share it on the blog) but it is a great keepsake of the day.

The instructor wasn't just there to make sure she didn't crash, he was giving her clear instruction and guidance on how to safely manouveure the car and drive effectively. Apparently she needs to work on steering a little more but if it was really easy on the first attempt, she would get complacent and that's not the idea! Young Driver state that they have taken the country's best driving instructors and trained them specifically to teach under 17s.

A 30 minute lesson is £34.95 with a 60 minute lesson at £64.95.

 

For little drivers aged 5-10 there is the Firefly experience in a little electric car, unfortunately it has no roof so when the heavens opened we got more than a little bit wet and hadn't dressed appropriately. This didn't stop the 5 year old from being beyond excited to drive a car!

The instructor goes round the track with them a couple of times and then you get the opportunity to be driven around the track. The novelty of being driven round by my 5 year old was not lost on me, although I did have to take control of the steering a few times! Despite the rain she laughed and chatted the whole way round the track and as soon as she was out of the car, she was asking when she could come back again.

A 20 minute lesson in a Firefly electric car is £19.95 and is available across a number of venues in the UK. For more information on Young Driver take a look at youngdriver.eu.

Both lessons were perfectly tailored to the ages of each child and the instructors were patient and not patronising in any way. Driving in a big open space with cones for a road layout is a little different to being on the main roads however is really is a fantastic way to get the children used to driving a vehicle and becoming confident behind the wheel. 

So in answer to the question posed at the top ..... yes you absolutely can drive a real car before you are 17, safely AND legally!

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Let’s be honest; adulthood is a myth. None of us ever feel ready to take on those big life events. Instead, we float along and hope the hard decisions will go away. But, when you become a parent, it’s important that you step up to the responsibility. You’re not only letting yourself down now; there’s a little one along for the ride. Is it any wonder there are so many overwhelmed parents out there? All that responsibility at once is a big ask. That’s why we’re going to look at a few things you need to get right now there are children in your life! 

THE CAREER

Have you failed to settle on a career? You aren’t alone. A lot of us end up in jobs which are far from what we imagined. These are make-do jobs, rather than lifetime careers. But, there are bills to pay, and before you know it, you’ve been there for five years.

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Once you become a parent, it’s that bit more important that you find a career you can settle in. The chances are, you’re going to wish you had done this sooner. But, hindsight won’t do you any good. Instead, take proactive steps to achieve your dream. Return to studying part time, or jump straight in and apply for careers which suit. 

Why is a career so important? Because you need to offer a secure lifestyle to a little person. A  make-do job isn’t going to provide that. For one, the chances are that your wages don’t offer the best lifestyle. For another, you need a career you can feel secure in. Convenient options are rarely the most stable. How are you meant to build a life for your kid when you don’t know what you’re working from one week to the next?

FACE THE FUTURE

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You’ve been putting it off, but now is the time to face the future. If your security down the line isn’t enough incentive, consider your child. The money you put into pensions and life insurance policies will form the basis for their inheritance. So, it’s time to get round to it. The good news is, there’s plenty of help available to make this an easy and painless life choice. Talk to your workplace about a pension, or look online at private options. The net can help you with life insurance, too. Sites like my Insurance Hero can compare various options to ensure you get the best deal. As horrible as these things may be to contemplate, finally taking care of them will be a huge relief. And, your child will thank you later on!

TIME TO BUY A HOUSE

Homeownership is becoming less and less common. Houses are expensive, and private rentals seem like a safer bet. But, your child needs a secure home life. With rentals, there is no security. You stand to lose your home whenever the landlord deems fit. So, it’s time to finally get around to booking that chat with a mortgage advisor! 

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